How to Decide What Population to Work With as a Supervisee
By Chris Campassi
Are you working towards licensure as a private practice counselor or social worker, ensuring that you are meeting all of your requirements for direct hours and supervision, but finding yourself dissatisfied with the population you are working with? You may find yourself taking any client on so you can keep a solid caseload to meet your requirements. At the same time, you find yourself working with clients outside of your area of specialization, or clients you just struggle to connect with.
If this is the case, it is a good idea to first make sure you have a supervisor who can work with you to identify your ideal client population, and find ways to market yourself to that target population. If you have a supervisor you trust to have these conversations, start having that conversation. If you do not have a supervisor who can support this process, and are located in Colorado or Washington, consider a supervisor here at Firelight Supervision!
Determining your Ideal Client
If you find yourself more and more frustrated with the clients you are working with, it may be good to take some time and really dial in what your ideal client looks like. Your ideal client is a client that will find you on your website or Psychology Today and say “that is who I want to work with!” Your ideal client is not just who you think would be “easy” to work with, but rather someone whose needs, personality and motivation fit the way you work with clients.
As a clinical supervisor, when I have worked with interns or supervisees on how to determine who their ideal client is, I often get push back. I hear comments like “I would work with anyone” or “I don’t want to exclude anyone”. This is a normal reaction, and one I had myself initially as well.
However, by identifying your ideal client, you are not suggesting that you would not work with other clients, but rather you are identifying what type of client you would work best with. This is also usually the type of client that would benefit most from working with you.
Factors to Consider in Identifying your Ideal Client
As you consider your ideal client, think about how you relate to your clients and how your clients relate to you. Most of us therapists do our best work with clients when we can build a strong relationship with them. While being able to relate with your clients is important, it is often critical that the client feels that they can relate with you. Whether or not a client feels they can relate to you may be determined by age, lifestyle and values, so it is really important to consider these things when identifying your ideal client.
In thinking about your ideal client, it is good to think outside of your specialty area and clinical presenting problems, such as anxiety, depression, and trauma. Most therapists work with these populations too, and this does not set you apart from any other therapist.
Instead, think about these things:
- Your ideal client’s age
- How they spend their time
- What hobbies they enjoy
- Their occupation
- What their value system looks like
- How motivated they are to do the work, and
- Whether their needs in a therapist match your style.
For example, some clients may seem ideal in their presenting problem, motivation and values, but might want a more directive and structured approach than you offer. If you are a therapist whose style is less directive and more explorative, the client may become frustrated and not find the benefit they are looking for in therapy. This will likely lead to you also feeling pressure to work in a way that is less authentic, and therefore less effective.
It is better in the end that this client finds a therapist that works in the way they need. This is not a reflection of you as a therapist, but rather the fit between you and the client.
Marketing Yourself to your Target Population
As mentioned above, setting yourself apart from other therapists is an important part of finding your ideal client as a private practice therapist. If you pursue a popular online directory (e.g., Psychology Today), many therapists kind of say the same things, and list similar clinical issues they address, as well as similar approaches and modalities.
As a prospective client looking for a therapist, this can be tedious and annoying, and can lead to individuals never actually finding a therapist and starting therapy. Being able to jump out to a prospective client can be critical in finding the clients you will work best with, and it may have nothing to do with your specialty area.
Once again, whether a client can relate to you will often be the most important factor in how well their experience will go, and how fulfilled you will feel when working with them. As you market towards your ideal clients, speak to them in a way that shows you are interested in what is most important to them.
Write your therapist bio or “About Me” section as if you were speaking to situations that your ideal clients are likely to find themselves in. You can include what they might struggle with, their values and how they may be misaligned with the life they are living, and who they are as a human. Not just why they are looking for therapy.
Try to connect with prospective clients through any blogs or marketing material you publish, and work to understand each client’s experience when you do pre-therapy consultation calls or respond to inquiries. The connection you create with potential clients will have a huge impact on your experience working with them.
Authenticity Matters
Being able to develop a style of work that is authentic and genuine to yourself as a therapist is another important factor in whether or not you feel fulfilled with your clinical work. When determining your ideal client, it may be good to re-evaluate your own style and whether it is genuine to you as a person.
During school and your graduate level internship, you may not have had much choice in your therapeutic style. You may have adopted a style that you can be good at, but is not authentic to your true self. While you may be very effective with this style or approach, working from a style that is authentic will allow you to do your BEST work, and will be more satisfying as well as more sustainable for your career.
So, before you jump to change your marketing approach, take some time with your supervisor to consider if your style and approach allows you to be your genuine self. If it does not, work on developing your style before you try to find your ideal client.
Your Ideal Client Probably Looks a lot like You
One way to identify your ideal client is to reflect on the clients you already are working with, or have worked with in the past. Consider which clients you find most engaging, gratifying to work with, and easiest to connect with. Most often, these are the clients you feel most genuine and authentic with, which leads to you being your best self in session.
And do not be surprised or discouraged if you find that your ideal client is someone who looks a lot like your current, or past self. This is pretty normal, as these are people that you will most easily relate to, and will likely relate most easily to you as well. Again, you are not excluding other clients. You are just acknowledging that these are the clients that you can be your best therapist with.
And always remember that there are plenty of other great therapists whose ideal client looks different than yours. Build a strong referral network so you can match someone else’s ideal client to them when you come across a client that you aren’t sure would be as good of a match as the therapist you refer to.
In doing this, you not only create a more sustainable caseload for yourself, but you also do a great service to a potential client when you match them with a therapist who would be the best therapist for that client.
Don’t Fall into the Trap of Certifications and Trainings
If you are struggling to find your ideal client or build a caseload that best matches your strengths and style, be careful not to attribute this to you needing more training or a specific certification. If you are passionate about learning a new skill or modality, go for it.
However, I would discourage finding a certification that sounds “trendy” as a way to find your ideal client. If you do this, you will begin to be confused about your ideal client, because you will start marketing to clients based on this new tool you have, rather than finding the best fit, and may begin to feel even more frustrated.
Strong Supervision can Help you Navigate this Process
If this blog resonates with you, and you need support in navigating this process, find a supervisor that you can trust to help walk you through this process and help you really consider what would be best for you and your clients.
At times, your assigned supervisor at work may be tasked with protecting the integrity of the system as much as your development as a therapist. A private, outside perspective can offer you the support you need to work through the changes you want to make, so that you can enjoy a satisfying and sustainable career.
How we can help
If you are in need of private supervision or clinical consultation, consider one of our many talented supervisors here at Firelight Supervision.
Author Bio
Chris Campassi is an Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS) and Program Coordinator of Firelight Supervision. He is a licensed psychotherapist in Colorado and North Carolina, blogger, and clinical supervisor for provisionally-licensed and independently licensed therapists. Chris enjoys helping men, medical professionals, and former athletes manage their anxiety and stress so they can live fulfilled and balanced lives. Follow Firelight Supervision on Instagram and Facebook.
